Manchester United came agonizingly close to pulling off one of the biggest upsets in their history but saved themselves to reach the FA Cup final.
The Red Devils led 3-0 at Second Division Coventry in the semi-final at Wembley, but conceded a 3-3 draw before celebrating with a 4-2 penalty shootout victory.
Coventry came very close to sensationalism on several occasions, even hitting the post in stoppage time and also leading on penalties, but a miss from captain Ben Sheaf meant United went ahead.
The “Red Devils” will again play in the trophy match against their city rivals Manchester City, having lost 1:2 last year. The Citizens qualified for the final after beating Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday.
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Now they were looking bravely towards the final again after a strong first half in which they took the lead with a Scott McTominy goal from Diogo Dalo’s sharp cross. At the end of the half, Harry Maguire headed in after a Bruno Fernandes corner kick.
United’s Portuguese leader made it another game with a fine performance in the 58th minute. United looked certain to be finalists.
But in the 71st minute Coventry striker Ellis Sims scored after an assist from Fabio Tavares. Then, with a lot of luck, through a ricochet, Calum O’Hara made 2:3 and restored the hopes of the second division team.
The drama came to a head in the 95th minute when Coventry scored from a penalty awarded for handball on Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
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The match went into overtime, where both teams hit the crossbar. At the very end, Coventry scored a winning goal for 4:3, but it was canceled due to a very thin ambush. In the end, in the penalties, luck was for the more famous team. A year ago, United again reached the final on penalties, knocking out elite Brighton.
Penalties for United: Casemiro misses, Dalo scores, Eriksen scores, Fernandes scores, Hoylund misses
penalties for Coventry: Wright scored, Thorpe scored, O’Hare missed, Sheaf missed
Photo: Getty Images
